HAURAKI PLAINS MACHINERY LOAN.

Hauraki Plains Gazette, Volume XXXII, Issue 4324, 30 September 1921, Page 2

HAURAKI PLAINS MACHINERY LOAN.

Sir-—I have read two or ( three ■ articles in your paper on the abpve subject, deploring the fact of it having been turned down by the ratepayers. ■ You surely must be 1 aware that it is quite possible for a county council to carry on its .work of roadmaking without having a lot of expensive machinery. I do hot know of any county council which has spent anything like the amount proposed (£31,000) in machinery,, yet they do a large amount of work, and do it we'lk and at reasonable cost. To my mind the proper course to pursue is to prepare plans and specifications for the work required to be done on any of the roads, then call tenders for the work, and let the other man provide the necessary machinery. I am sure this will be found far more satisfactory than for the county to have the machinery, and have tp hire it out, as in any case they will need to call tenders. I am quite' sure this is not the time to go in for expensive offices anywhere ; money is too hard to get; much less than .the sum proposed would be ample. The proposal to raise £Bio'o to'go prospecting for quarries is unreasonable. At the present rate of interest, it means about £6OO a year. Now, suppose they use 8000 yards of metal per year, the interest cost would be Is 6d per yard. 8000 yards of metal would be sufficient to do six miles of road, sixteen yards to the chain. As practically all the roads they have to deal with have already been metalled, very much less would be required tp put roads in good order. The Turua-Netherton-Paeroa Road is in a dreadful state, and should have immediate lt is unreasonable to ask settlers to pay rates and get no return for same. The extra cost m conveying goods, etc., over this road means a further heavy rate. At the present time settlers should be given every facility possible to enable them to carry on.

If this machinery loan is brought on'again, I hope the ratepayers will turn it down more emphatically than they did last time. The fact that the council has purchased a lot of unnecessary machinery should not have any weight with the ratepayers, as the money spent in this way would have done much good had it been spent on the' roads. R. M. BAGNALL. Turua, 30/9/21.